2008 Razor Signature Series
Contents
Description
2008 Razor Signature Series is a 200-card draft pick set released in December, 2008. Each pack contained an autograph. The last 100 cards in the base set are all autographed and feature the same checklist as the first 100 cards. All autographs are "trapped cuts," that is, in lieu of sticker autographs, each player signed a paper "tab" that is mounted (or "trapped") on the card -- not unlike a cut signature.
Razor, the predecessor of the modern incarnation of Leaf Trading Cards, signed 42 2008 MLB Draftees to exclusive trading card and autograph contracts for the remainder of 2008 -- keeping them away from Topps' 2008 Bowman Draft Picks & Prospects in the process. Fifteen of the first 20 players drafted including the first four picks were all exclusive to Razor. Unfortunately for Razor, 2008 turned out not to be a particularly good draft class, and the class's best player Buster Posey signed for both Razor and BDP&P. Giancarlo "Michael" Stanton, a 2007 draft pick, also appears in both 2008 Razor and 2008 BDP&P.
The product is not licensed by either MLB Properties or the Collegiate Licensing Corporation (CLC) and as such players are depicted in either high school or airbrushed college uniforms.
Inclusion of Matt Wieters
Razor also signed Matt Wieters, the fifth pick overall in the 2007 draft, to an eight-year exclusive contract that prohibited any other company from producing a Wieters card until after he had made his Major League debut (which he did in 2009). Because Topps is not subject to the MLBPA's Group Licensing Agreement and signs players to individual contracts, Wieters (with the exception of a 2009 eTopps card) would not appear on a Topps card until 2016.
Upper Deck was able to include Wieters in some of their late-season 2009 releases -- their last as a fully-licensed company -- as well as the retroactively-licensed 2010 Upper Deck set. From that point until 2016, these were the only fully-licensed Matt Wieters cards printed. Panini, which has had an MLBPA license since 2011, has regularly included Wieters in their checklists.
Distribution
Ten packs per box, five cards per pack (MSRP: $12.50).
Reviews
Insertion Ratios
| Cards | Total Cards | Numbered To | Hobby Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base | 200 | - | 4:1 |
| short set | 100 | - | 4:1 |
| Autographs | 100 | varies | one-per-pack |
| Black | 100 | 200 | ? |
| Blue | 100 | 25 | ? |
| Autographs Black | 100 | 199 | ? |
| Autographs Blue | 100 | 25 | ? |
| Autographs Double Black | 100 | 5 | ? |
| Exclusives Autographs | 42 | - | ? |
| Dual Signatures | 13 | 99 | ? |
| Dual Signatures Black | 13 | 25 | ? |
| Dual Signatures Blue | 13 | 5 | ? |
Checklist
Promo
A set of four Tim Beckham promo cards were issued to promote the upcoming 2008 Razor Signature Series set. Unfortunately, all four cards are exactly the same, with the only difference being the card's sequential number (e.g. "TB-XP" where "X" is a number from 1 to 4). A Black parallel for each card also exists, however, none of the Black cards are serial-numbered, and appear to have been produced in the same quantities as the other promos.
Base Set
- 1 Tim Beckham
- 2 Pedro Alvarez
- 3 Eric Hosmer
- 4 Brian Matusz
- 5 Buster Posey
- 6 Kyle Skipworth
- 7 Yonder Alonso
- 8 Gordon Beckham
- 9 Aaron Crow
- 10 Jason Castro
- 11 Justin Smoak
- 12 Jemile Weeks
- 13 Brett Wallace
- 14 Aaron Hicks
- 15 Ethan Martin
- 16 Brett Lawrie
- 17 David Cooper
- 18 Ike Davis
- 19 Andrew Cashner
- 20 Joshua Fields
- 21 Ryan Perry
- 22 Reese Havens
- 23 Allan Dykstra
- 24 Anthony Hewitt
- 25 Christian Friedrich
- 26 Daniel Schlereth
- 27 Carlos Gutierrez
- 28 Lonnie Chisenhall
- 29 Casey Kelly
- 30 David Adams
- 31 Jeremy Bleich
- 32 Brett DeVall
- 33 Cutter Dykstra
- 34 Stephen Fife
- 35 Ryan Flaherty
- 36 Derrik Gibson
- 37 Pete Hissey
- 38 Destin Hood
- 39 Garrison Lassiter
- 40 Che-Hsuan Lin
- 41 Kyle Lobstein
- 42 Jordan Lyles
- 43 Brett Marshall
- 44 Tim Melville
- 45 Wade Miley
- 46 D.J. Mitchell
- 47 Robbie Ross
- 48 Tanner Scheppers
- 49 Ross Seaton
- 50 Chris Smith
- 51 Ryan Westmoreland
- 52 Robbie Weinhardt
- 53 Casper Wells
- 54 Matt Wieters
- 55 Michael Antonini
- 56 Jay Austin
- 57 Jeremy Beckham
- 58 Eric Berger
- 59 Charlie Blackmon
- 60 Bobby Bundy
- 61 Sawyer Carroll
- 62 Welington Castillo
- 63 Ryan Chaffee
- 64 Tyler Chatwood
- 65 Dusty Coleman
- 66 Brandon Crawford
- 67 Jordan Danks
- 68 James Darnell
- 69 Danny Espinosa
- 70 Jeremy Farrell
- 71 Tim Federowicz
- 72 Tim Fedroff
- 73 Logan Forsythe
- 74 Rolando Gomez
- 75 Anthony Gose
- 76 Robbie Grossman
- 77 Trey Haley
- 78 Brad Holt
- 79 Brett Hunter
- 80 Jake Jefferies
- 81 Lance Lynn
- 82 Jordy Mercer
- 83 Quinton Miller
- 84 Mike Montgomery
- 85 Tim Murphy
- 86 Petey Paramore
- 87 Cord Phelps
- 88 Bryan Price
- 89 Kevin Pucetas
- 90 Zach Putnam
- 91 Dennis Raben
- 92 J.P. Ramirez
- 93 Tyson Ross
- 94 Cody Satterwhite
- 95 Logan Schafer
- 96 Zeke Spruill
- 97 Michael Stanton
- 98 T.J. Steele
- 99 Niko Vasquez
- 100 Beamer Weems
Autographs
Each Autograph is serial-numbered to the production figures listed below.
- 101 Tim Beckham 499
- 102 Pedro Alvarez 499
- 103 Eric Hosmer 699
- 104 Brian Matusz 699
- 105 Buster Posey 499
- 106 Kyle Skipworth 699
- 107 Yonder Alonso 699
- 108 Gordon Beckham 499
- 109 Aaron Crow 699
- 110 Jason Castro 1199
- 111 Justin Smoak 699
- 112 Jemile Weeks 699
- 113 Brett Wallace 499
- 114 Aaron Hicks 699
- 115 Ethan Martin 699
- 116 Brett Lawrie 499
- 117 David Cooper 1199
- 118 Ike Davis 499
- 119 Andrew Cashner 699
- 120 Joshua Fields 1199
- 121 Ryan Perry 699
- 122 Reese Havens 1199
- 123 Allan Dykstra 1199
- 124 Anthony Hewitt 1199
- 125 Christian Friedrich 1199
- 126 Daniel Schlereth 1499
- 127 Carlos Gutierrez 1199
- 128 Lonnie Chisenhall 699
- 129 Casey Kelly 1199
- 130 David Adams 1199
- 131 Jeremy Bleich 1199
- 132 Brett DeVall 1499
- 133 Cutter Dykstra 1199
- 134 Stephen Fife 1499
- 135 Ryan Flaherty 1199
- 136 Derrik Gibson 1199
- 137 Pete Hissey 1199
- 138 Destin Hood 699
- 139 Garrison Lassiter 1499
- 140 Che-Hsuan Lin 1499
- 141 Kyle Lobstein 699
- 142 Jordan Lyles 1499
- 143 Brett Marshall 1499
- 144 Tim Melville 699
- 145 Wade Miley 1499
- 146 D.J. Mitchell 1499
- 147 Robbie Ross 1499
- 148 Tanner Scheppers 1499
- 149 Ross Seaton 1499
- 150 Chris Smith 1499
- 151 Ryan Westmoreland 1199
- 152 Robbie Weinhardt 1499
- 153 Casper Wells 1499
- 154 Matt Wieters 499
- 155 Michael Antonini 499
- 156 Jay Austin 1499
- 157 Jeremy Beckham 1499
- 158 Eric Berger 699
- 159 Charlie Blackmon 1499
- 160 Bobby Bundy 1199
- 161 Sawyer Carroll 699
- 162 Welington Castillo 1199
- 163 Ryan Chaffee 1499
- 164 Tyler Chatwood 1499
- 165 Dusty Coleman 499
- 166 Brandon Crawford 699
- 167 Jordan Danks 1499
- 168 James Darnell 1499
- 169 Danny Espinosa 1499
- 170 Jeremy Farrell 699
- 171 Tim Federowicz 699
- 172 Tim Fedroff 1499
- 173 Logan Forsythe 1499
- 174 Rolando Gomez 699
- 175 Anthony Gose 1499
- 176 Robbie Grossman 1499
- 177 Trey Haley 1499
- 178 Brad Holt 1499
- 179 Brett Hunter 1499
- 180 Jake Jefferies 1199
- 181 Lance Lynn 1499
- 182 Jordy Mercer 1499
- 183 Quinton Miller 1499
- 184 Mike Montgomery 1499
- 185 Tim Murphy 1499
- 186 Petey Paramore 1499
- 187 Cord Phelps 1499
- 188 Bryan Price 1499
- 189 Kevin Pucetas 1499
- 190 Zach Putnam 1199
- 191 Dennis Raben 1499
- 192 J.P. Ramirez 1199
- 193 Tyson Ross 699
- 194 Cody Satterwhite 1199
- 195 Logan Schafer 699
- 196 Zeke Spruill 1199
- 197 Michael Stanton 1199
- 198 T.J. Steele 499
- 199 Niko Vasquez 1199
- 200 Beamer Weems 699
Parallels
All 100 non-autographed base cards are available in the following parallels.
- Black (serial-numbered to 200 copies)
- Blue (serial-numbered to 25 copies)
All 100 autographed base cards are available in the following parallels.
- Black (serial-numbered to 199 copies)
- Blue (serial-numbered to 25 copies)
- Double Black (serial-numbered to five)
Printing Plates
About a week before 2008 Razor Signature Series' release, Razor began selling the printing plates used to produce to the product on eBay. All four plates (cyan, magenta, yellow, and black) for all 200 base cards were sold, and all 100 autographed base cards had their plates signed.
Silver
Also around the same time as they started selling Printing Plates, Silver parallels for all 100 non-autographed base cards were also made available via eBay.
Autographs
Exclusives Autographs
Each Exclusives Autograph is also available in the following parallels.
- Black (serial-numbered to 25 copies)
- Blue (serial-numbered to five)
- ES-01 Tim Beckham
- ES-02 Pedro Alvarez
- ES-03 Eric Hosmer
- ES-04 Brian Matusz
- ES-05 Kyle Skipworth
- ES-06 Yonder Alonso
- ES-07 Aaron Crow
- ES-08 Jason Castro
- ES-09 Justin Smoak
- ES-10 Jemile Weeks
- ES-11 Brett Wallace
- ES-12 Aaron Hicks
- ES-13 Ethan Martin
- ES-14 Brett Lawrie
- ES-15 David Cooper
- ES-16 Reese Havens
- ES-17 Casey Kelly
- ES-18 David Adams
- ES-19 Jeremy Bleich
- ES-20 Brett DeVall
- ES-21 Cutter Dykstra
- ES-22 Stephen Fife
- ES-23 Ryan Flaherty
- ES-24 Derrik Gibson
- ES-25 Pete Hissey
- ES-26 Destin Hood
- ES-27 Garrison Lassiter
- ES-28 Che-Hsuan Lin
- ES-29 Kyle Lobstein
- ES-30 Jordan Lyles
- ES-31 Brett Marshall
- ES-32 Tim Melville
- ES-33 Wade Miley
- ES-34 D.J. Mitchell
- ES-35 Robbie Ross
- ES-36 Tanner Scheppers
- ES-37 Ross Seaton
- ES-38 Chris Smith
- ES-39 Ryan Westmoreland
- ES-40 Robbie Weinhardt
- ES-41 Casper Wells
- ES-42 Matt Wieters
Dual Signatures
Each Dual Signature is serial-numbered to 99 copies and available in the following parallels.
- Black (serial-numbered to 25 copies)
- Blue (serial-numbered to five)
- DS-01 Tim Beckham / Pedro Alvarez
- DS-02 Matt Wieters / Kyle Skipworth
- DS-03 Eric Hosmer / Ethan Martin
- DS-04 Brian Matusz / Casey Kelly
- DS-05 Yonder Alonso / Jemile Weeks
- DS-06 Tim Beckham / Jeremy Beckham
- DS-07 David Cooper / Brett Wallace
- DS-08 Justin Smoak / Robbie Ross
- DS-09 Brett Lawrie / Cutter Dykstra
- DS-10 Destin Hood / Aaron Crow
- DS-11 Stephen Fife / Casey Kelly
- DS-12 Jason Castro / Jordan Lyles
- DS-13 D.J. Mitchell / Brett Marshall
